


High School (B)romance (The Fic)

by Muffinpughugs



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Dirk has a caffiene addiction, Dirkjake Week 2021, F/M, Gay, High School, Homecoming, Jock/Nerd AU, Multi, Multi Chapter, Neopronouns, Starbucks, Trans Female Roxy Lalonde, Trans Male Character, Trans Male Dirk Strider, but only kind of, no beta we die like men, slow dance, teenage romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-14
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-12 03:28:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28753632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Muffinpughugs/pseuds/Muffinpughugs
Summary: Dirk Strider, resident nerd, is stupidly in love with Jake English, resident football player. The Homecoming dance is coming up, and Roxy thinks that this is the perfect opportunity for Dirk to get his gay on.
Relationships: Jake English/Dirk Strider, Jane Crocker/Roxy Lalonde
Kudos: 20
Collections: DirkJake Big Bang 2k21





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> CONTENT WARNINGS FOR THIS FIC INCLUDE:
> 
> \- Mentions of food  
> \- School   
> \- Social Anxiety  
> \- Addictions (just to caffiene, nothing big)  
> \- Big Stress Momence   
> \- Anxiety in General
> 
> (that should be it... let me know if it isnt!)

*BEEEEEP*

Around the classroom, students started packing up their items, or rather shoving such items haphazardly into their backpacks.

“Everyone quiet down, the announcements are on,” the teacher groaned. Nobody cared to listen, and instead took to slinging their bags over shoulders and grabbing papers that they would likely not need later. 

The intercom filled the air with static, before a cheerful voice spoke.

“Good afternoon, students! This is a reminder that this Friday is the annual Homecoming game! We will be playing against our rival, Alternia high! And remember that this Saturday is the Homecoming dance! So be sure to grab your tickets ahead of time at the game Friday, or in the cafeteria during lunch tomorrow!” The voice over the intercom stopped for a moment to take a breath and to flip a sheet of paper, presumably the script that the voice was reading off of.

“All after school activities have been cancelled today in anticipation of a thunderstorm that is to hit our area at about 4:15. As for bus changes, bus 413 will be late to arrive at school this afternoon. Expect a wait of around 15 minutes. Have a wonderful day, and go Sprites!” The intercom buzzed out.

A few teenagers groaned at the chipper voice through the speakers, and a few more rolled their eyes at the delay of their bus. One of these students was not Dirk Strider, resident smart kid, but more well known as resident scary kid that sat in the back corner of the class. 

So what if he didn’t like people, or if he looked kind of “edgy”? That didn’t mean he wasn’t smart. It was quite the opposite, really. Dirk might be one of the smartest kids, if not the smartest, at Skaia high. He just didn’t care for most other students. The only friends he had were pretty different from himself, but that didn’t dampen their friendship at all.

The bell rang, and Dirk stood up, grabbing their backpack and sketchbook and walking out the door to the classroom and into the bustling hallway. Dirk sighed, pulling out his phone and connecting his phone to his headphones. Music flowed into his ears, beats and rhythms making their way into his footsteps as he walked out towards the bus loop.

Dirk exited the building, turning and leaning against the wall. His bus wouldn’t be here for another… thirteen minutes? So they leaned against the brick wall on the outside of the building and waited. 

Tension left his shoulders as he watched the buses pass on by and the crowd of students dissipated. They nearly closed their eyes in release of tension. Then, a voice called to him, cutting through his music.

“Dirk! Dirky! Yo!” Dirk perked up, looking to the direction of the voice. He smirked and slipped his headphones off of his ear.

“Hey, Rox. What’s up?” Dirk asked the person, Roxy, who was skipping towards him.

“Dirk, I’ve been looking everywhere for you!” Roxy exclaimed, making a dramatic expression. Dirk snorted.

“I was just chilling out here, you could have texted me,” Dirk retorted, getting a very specific stare from Roxy.

“Dude, I did. Like, five times. Did you not get them or something?” Roxy pulled out their phone, opening their messages and pointing to where they had texted Dirk. Dirk shrugged.

“My phone didn’t buzz. But yeah, that’s probably my fault.” Dirk stood there for a moment, looking at Roxy through his shades. “Well, what did you need me for?” Dirk asked.

“Oh, yeah! I wanted to know if you wanted a ride home because your bus is late! I doubt that fifteen minutes is an accurate time of arrival anyways so like… yeah!” Roxy smiled up at him. Dirk rubbed his eyes and smiled at his friend.

“Sure, but can we get coffee on the way? I have physics homework due tomorrow and I’m gonna pass out without it.” Roxy giggled and grabbed Dirk’s arm, dragging him in the direction of the student parking lot. 

“So…” Roxy started, walking towards xer car, turning towards Dirk as xe unlocked the door. “Do you have a date to homecoming yet?” They inquired, opening the door and hopping into the seat, Dirk following suit. Dirk shook his head as Roxy started the car. 

“What? No way, dude, we gotta get you a date,” Roxy exclaimed, throwing their hands off the wheel dramatically. Dirk rolled his eyes, shucking his backpack off and plopping it into the space in front of him. 

“I don’t do that kind of thing, Rox,” Dirk explained. “I don’t like people.” Roxy feigned being stabbed in the chest before putting his hands back on the wheel and pulling out of their parking space.

“You like me, Dirky! At least I hope you do!” Roxy left the school parking lot, swinging left towards where the highway was. 

“I like you, Roxy. You’re one of the few people I can put up with,” he braced his armrest, mocking Roxy’s terrible (and gay) driving. Roxy smiled, cruising down the road. 

“Well, who else can you at least put up with? Give me a list to work with here, broski!” Roxy changed lanes and took the exit onto the highway. Dirk sat still, thinking for a moment before shrugging and looking over at Roxy, who was focused on the road.

Dirk turned back and pulled out his phone, pulling up all of his contacts. He scrolled through, naming a few off to Roxy as he did.

“I’m looking through my contacts right now. So far, I found Dave, who’s my brother and I kind of have to put up with him anyways… June, who is going with Dave already…” Roxy nodded. “Jane, uh, you two are dating. I’m gay. Doesn’t really work out,” Dirk spoke with humor in his voice. Roxy snorted.

“You could always be a third wheel!” Roxy suggested, while Dirk made a face.

“I love you two, but absolutely not.” Dirk scrolled further, jumping over a few contacts. “Jade’s nice, but again, I’m gay…” He sighed, flopping his phone onto his lap. “Who the hell else do we know?” Dirk looked back over at Roxy. He saw their thinking face, and then a lightbulb appeared over their head. 

“How about Jake?” Dirk looked at them with wide eyes, spitting out his metaphorical drink. 

“You mean Jake English? The fucking football player?” Dirk interrogated, drawing a slight, mischievous smile from Roxy’s lips.

“Yeah, that’s him! He and Jane talk a lot, so I tend to talk to him too sometimes!” They exclaimed excitedly, beaming as they took an exit off of the highway in the direction of caffeine. Dirk rubbed his eyes under his shades. 

“Isn’t he super popular? In a bad way?” Roxy shook his head.

“No way, jose. I mean, maybe a little bit, but he’s a nice guy! He’s super optimistic-” Dirk laughed sarcastically. “-Hey, that doesn’t mean anything spoil sport! He’s kind of a dork, honestly. You know how June’s kind of nerdy and dorky?” Dirk nodded as Roxy slowed down at a stop light, the sky starting to release a few sprinkles of raindrops. “He’s dorky like that, but instead of being nerdy he’s a jock! Kind of… he’s not even super jock-ish. He just likes football and making friends!” Roxy explained. Dirk nodded along, watching as Roxy pulled into the Starbucks parking lot. 

“We’re not going through the drive through?” Dirk questioned.

“No, it’s nice inside and it’s warm! Don’t worry, I have an umbrella-ella-ella- eh eh eh eh-” Roxy began to hum the tune of Umbrella by Rihanna. Dirk rolled his eyes and unbuckled his seatbelt. He pocketed his phone and flipped on his hood, stepping out of the car.

The two jogged to the Starbucks, Roxy locking the car as they got close. The two opened the door with a ring and were met with the smell of coffee grounds. Roxy followed Dirk into the line leading up to the counter, pulling out their wallet. 

“Drinks on me, my good sir,” Xe bowed comedically at Dirk.

“Thank you for bestowing this gift upon me, dear friend. Your kindness is not without gratefulness,” he retorted. Xe smiled and opened xer wallet, pulling out xer Starbucks gift card. The line slowly filtered out as new people came and went, businesspeople pulling in through the drive through and other teenagers that neither Dirk or Roxy recognized. Eventually, the two arrived at the counter and the chipper barista took their order.

“Hi, welcome to Starbucks, what can I get for you today?” The barista asked happily. Roxy’s eyes wandered to their name tag, which read ‘Feferi!’ in pink sharpie. 

“Oh, you’re Meenah’s sister!” Roxy exclaimed! Feferi smiled, seemingly brightening up the whole room full of exhausted staff members and customers.

“Shore am! She’s not very nice sometimes, but I guess we’re family!” Feferi giggled, tapping at the screen at the counter. “Anyways, what can I get for you?” They asked kindly. 

“Ohhh, could I get a grande salted caramel mocha?” Feferi nodded, tapping his order in onto the screen. After a moment, they nodded, looking up at Dirk.

“And for you?” Feferi asked. 

“I’ll have a latte. Just, a normal latte. A grande latte.” Feferi nodded, putting his order in and grabbing cups for both of them. 

“That’ll be $8.60! Could I have the names for your orders?” Roxy handed them their gift card, watching them scan it. 

“I’m Roxy, the other one’s Dirk!” Roxy told the barista. They nodded, writing their names on their respective cups. 

“Would you like a receipt?” Feferi asked.

“No thank you,” Dirk spoke for Roxy. 

“Alright! Your drinks will be right out!” Feferi sped off to make their coffee, another barista taking over the register. The two got out of line and sat down near the window. Dirk looked at Roxy, raising an eyebrow.

“I’m just the other one?” Dirk asked. Roxy snorted.

“Sorry, dude. You’re not just the other one, you’re the other one,” Roxy explained, putting emphasis on ‘the’. Dirk rolled his eyes and fiddled with his hoodie string, watching the rain pour down and the cars drive by, before one of them pulled into the Starbucks parking lot. Dirk watched the car in interest, seeing as it drove by a few empty spaces before pulling into one. Whoever was driving the car was obviously distracted a little, perhaps by a passenger or by a device, as they sat in the car for a few more minutes, enough time having passed for Dirk and Roxy’s drinks to have been prepared and for Roxy to bring them back to the table.

“Whatcha lookin’ at Dirky?” Roxy asked.

“I’m just looking at this car that pulled into the parking lot,” Dirk explained. Roxy nodded, looking out the window and sliding Dirk his coffee.

“Aw, no way! I think that’s Jane’s car!” Roxy pulled out their phone, quickly texting Jane. A few moments passed, and Roxy’s phone buzzed again. He grinned, looking down at his phone. “It is! Omg Janey’s here!” Roxy looked out the window, watching Jane step out of the car. Roxy waved at her through the window, smiling way too wide for anyone to think he wasn’t a little crazy. Jane saw her and waved back happily. Then, a second figure stepped out of the car. 

“Oh snap, Dirk, Jake’s here too! Maybe you two can talk or kiss or something!” Dirk facepalmed internally, though he watched intently as Jake stepped out of the car, jogging to the Starbucks to avoid the now torrential rain as Jane ran after him with an umbrella. Roxy giggled as they ran up to the door and entered the Starbucks. Dirk took a sip of his latte as he watched the two walk up to the line, Jane whispering her order to Jake before nearly skipping over to Roxy.

“Hi Roxy! Hi Dirk!” Jane smiled, sitting down in the chair next to Roxy. “What kind of mischief are you two up to?”

“I was tryna get Dirk a date to HOCO!” Jane rubbed her hands together, looking at Dirk, who sunk down in his chair. 

“Ohoho! What are your ideas so far?” Jane asked Roxy, smirking and wiggling her eyebrows. “I’m sure you’ve come up with something, mx. Romance!” Xe snorted, looking over at Dirk and smirking.

“Well, I was thinking… and since you’re here too, you might be able to give me a bit of an insight too!” Roxy smiled, turning back to Jane and sipping on their drink.

“Do tell, dear.” Jane spoke. Roxy’s eyes lit up from behind his heart shaped glasses.

“I was thinking… how about mister English? I mean, really think about it for a second. Let the thought simmer in your mind, babe. Just really let it get in there, Janey cakes,” Roxy explained. Jane thought for a moment, before smirking.

“Roxy, darling,” Jane leaned in close to Roxy, their faces nearly touching. “You’re a genius!” Jane and Roxy giggled and high fived each other. Dirk gave them a quizzical look, before glancing over at the new figure to his side.

“What’s the big idea?” Jake asked, sitting down besides the two. Roxy shook their head and shrugged. 

“Don’t worry about it, babes,” Roxy replied. Jake sat down next to Dirk, sliding Jane her pink drink. Roxy grabbed it first and took a sip, eliciting a ‘hey!’ from Jane and a laugh from Roxy. Roxy gave their girlfriend her drink, and returned to drinking their coffee. Dirk glanced over at Jake, who looked to be drinking a tea of some sort. Jake set down his tea and turned to Dirk.

“Hello! I don’t believe we’ve formally met before! I’m Jake, Jake English! You might have heard about me from sports or from Jane and Roxy!” Jake stuck his hand out for Dirk to shake. ‘Formal’, Dirk thought. ‘But also a dork’, he added internally, smiling a bit.

“I’m Dirk. Last name Strider. The two lovebirds across from us have probably mentioned me a few times to you,” Dirk introduced himself, shaking Jake’s hand firmly. Jake smiled, seemingly lighting up the whole room, making Dirk’s heart beat a little faster. Dirk felt a bit of heat rush to his face at touching Jake’s hand. 

“They certainly have, I can assure you of that…” Jake spoke nervously. “Say, your last name is… Strider? As in The Strider? Like, the movieman? D. Strider?” Jake asked, cocking his head to the side. ‘He’s so animated’, Dirk thought to himself. 

“That’s my brother for you,” Dirk said. His heart sank a little. Was Jake a big fan? What if Dirk didn’t meet his Strider expectations? Did Jake even have any expectations? To be fair, this is the first time they’re actually meeting. Shit! Did Dirk already mess this up? 

“Splendid! I’m a huge fan of his works, though I must say that I never understood some parts of his movies…” he trailed off, thinking out loud. Dirk chuckled and shook his head.

“Yeah, that sounds about right,” Dirk explained. “He’s a self proclaimed ‘ironic master’, so a lot of his jokes tend to go under the radar, but that’s what makes him special I suppose.” Dirk took a sip of his coffee, Jake following suit and taking a drink of his tea. The faint smell of bergamot orange wafted to Dirk’s nose, making him perk up. ‘Earl Grey Tea’, he thought. He’d never tried it himself, however.

“Is that Earl Grey?” Dirk questioned Jake. He nodded, sliding the cup in Dirk’s direction.

“Fancy a taste? It’s one of my favorites,” Jake offered. Dirk shakily took the tea, sipping a little bit from the cup. ‘Citrusy’, he thought. ‘Tastes like oranges and lemons’. Dirk nodded, sliding the cup back to Jake.  
“Not too shabby. I like citrusy things.” Dirk pointed to the Fanta logo pin on his hoodie. Jake laughed, leaning in and looking closer at the pins on his jacket.

“These are quite nifty! I like the sweet bro and hella jeff ones! Oh, and the little pumpkin!” Jake exclaimed. Dirk giggled, pointing to the pumpkin.

“I got this one from a state fair in seventh grade after my crush told me that I had pumpkin eyes,” Dirk explained. “It was kind of a funny story, really.” Jake beamed up at Dirk.

“Oh, who was the lucky lady?” He asked. Dirk smiled and shook his head.

“His name was Karkat, I’m sure you’ve heard of him.” Jake’s face seemed to light up for a moment.

“Oh! I know him! He’s one of the movie night club thingamajig members! I’m in that club,” Jake spoke. “Also, you’re gay? Or something else? Not to be pushy or anything, I’m just rather curious.” Dirk pointed to his pride flag pins, a little rainbow flag and a trans flag. Jake nodded.

“Dandy! I’m a little gay myself, you see. Well, not just a little, I am gay, though I do tend to get cases of comphet quite often… it’s rather bothersome!” Dirk laughed, nodding along. ‘So maybe you do have a chance if you don’t fuck something up’, he thought. 

“That’s pretty cool. I think everyone in this group is a little gay,” Dirk explained, laughing. 

“Hey!” Roxy glared at him. “I am not a ‘little gay’, I’m a big gay! I make all the other homos tremble in fear!” Roxy exclaimed aloud, making a few patrons look at him strangely. Dirk rolled his eyes mockingly, turning back to Jake.

“Point made.” Dirk took a sip of his latte and Jake took a drink of his Earl Grey. The two sat in silence for a few moments, neither knowing what to say or to do, until Roxy spoke up.

“Dirk, not to be homophobic but don’t you have Physics homework you need to do?” Dirk cursed himself internally for being a nerd. 

“Yeah, I do,” he replied. 

“So? Should we get going?” Roxy asked. Dirk sighed and nodded, standing up and looking back at Jake, who had pulled out his receipt that was crumpled up in his pocket and seemed to be jotting something down. 

“So, I guess I’ll see the two of you later at some point,” Dirk said to Jane and Jake. Jane nodded from their seat. 

“Yep!” She spoke, popping the ‘p’. Jake looked up at Dirk from behind his glasses and handed him the receipt, which Dirk took without really thinking as well as grabbing his backpack and drink.

“My number’s on there, I enjoyed talking to you and I do hope we can meet again some time, chap!” Jake smiled, looking at Dirk. Dirk blushed a little, looking down at the receipt before pocketing it. 

“Thanks, man. You too,” Dirk replied, waving as he and Roxy exited the cafe while xe opened an umbrella for the two of them. Dirk pulled on his hood.

“Sooooo…!” Roxy winked at Dirk, who looked away embarrassedly. 

“Shut up, Roxy…” Dirk trailed off. Xe laughed and patted him on the shoulder, walking to the car.

“Dude, bro, you have it bad for that dork and you know it.” Dirk sighed and nodded in agreement, running to the passenger’s side of the car and hopping in to avoid getting drenched. Roxy drove him home, the car ride silent save for a few eyebrow waggles and Grouplove on the bluetooth radio. 

Meanwhile, back in the cafe, Jane spoke to Jake. Jake paid little to no attention as he thought back on the boy he met moments ago. His heart skipped a beat, thinking about him as his eyes trailed subconsciously to his phone in hopes of a message, though unrealistic. Jake thought about his hand, soft yet firm. His hair, pale like woven gold, box dyed blonde. He wondered what eyes were underneath those shades of his. 

Dirk sat down at his desk, pulling out his physics homework and calculator, tucking a pencil behind his ear, setting to work. He felt his mind drifting back to Jake. His hands were muscular, but they were smooth. He had a small trail of stubble across his cheeks and chin, perfectly kissable. His glasses were rectangular, nerdy, but his eyes were a deep forest that Dirk found himself hopelessly lost in. He found himself doodling Jake on his physics homework. 

God, he was hopeless.


	2. In Which Dirk Goes To Football Practice

Dirk woke up to the alarm clock on his bedside table beeping angrily, forcing him out of his sleep. He was tired, so tired, but with one glance at the clock, he knew he had to get up or else he would be late for school, which is something that he would never allow. So Strider stood up and got dressed, shucking on some jeans and a shirt, before grabbing his jacket, shades, phone, and school stuff before heading downstairs, but not without turning off his alarm. 

He shuffled down the stairs, seeing his brother sitting on the couch and watching the news, cup of coffee in hand. Dirk noted that he wasn’t wearing a shirt and stuck out his tongue, averting his eyes and walking into the kitchen. He opened up the pantry and grabbed the bread, taking a few slices. He went to the fridge, got out a bottle of orange soda to put in his backpack, and closed the fridge, looking back at his brother.

“Yo, I’m heading out,” Dirk exclaimed from across the room. His brother hummed in response, and Dirk walked out the door. 

In the crisp fall air, Dirk walked to the bus stop. As he arrived at the corner of the street, he saw the yellow school bus turn onto his street. As it stopped in front of him, Dirk hopped on and fumbled his way to the back, ignoring the loud conversations of the middle schoolers who shared the bus, as well as a few stares that he could feel on his back. He sank down in his seat and put in his headphones, taking a bite out of his plain bread, regretting his decisions.

A few minutes later, the bus arrived at school, and Dirk felt himself get off of the bus and head into the school building. He looked around the halls full of bustling students and peers, none of which he necessarily liked. Too bad he had to deal with them anyways. He would very much prefer not to. 

Dirk continued to his first period class, Trigonometry. It was easy enough for him, so he doubted that the class would be too painful that day. Maybe just some note taking and lecturing. He entered his class, sat down, and waited for class to start.

Turns out, he was about right. His first period flew by quickly, and before he knew it, he was in his second block already. English was boring, but at least he was decent at it, so that class went by quickly too. Soon enough, he found himself walking to the lunch room to meet up with Roxy, who he had texted earlier in class about grabbing his HOCO tickets. Dirk saw them in the lunch line and walked in their direction.

“Hey, Rox,” Dirk exclaimed. Roxy turned, waving at him.

“Sup Dirk! What’s good, my man?” Roxy let Dirk into the line with them, getting a few glares from some students. Dirk didn’t care, he was fucking hungry as hell for some plastic pizza. 

“Not much, school’s been going by fast so far. No complaints, just hungry for some literal cardboard,” Dirk explained. Roxy nodded.

“Yeah, I get that. Someone spilled paint water in art today but it didn’t get anywhere bad, so we’re good,” Roxy moved up in line with Dirk. “What kind of cardboard do you want today? Pick your poison, sport, what’ll it be?” Xe asked mockingly. Dirk laughed.

“Man, I could really go for some plastic pizza right now, what about you?” Dirk asked.

“Maccy cheesy, but made with orange paint and packing peanuts,” Roxy replied. Dirk snorted, nodding.

“Sounds like some kraft abomination if I’ve ever seen one,” Dirk said. Xe nodded, asking the lunch lady for mac and cheese. Dirk did the same, asking for a pizza slice. The food was shoved towards them, and they continued in line.

“Seriously. What do they even put in this shit? Like, genuine question, dude.” Roxy asked. Dirk shrugged, tapping in his lunch number to pay for his pizza. Roxy followed suit, and the two left the lunch line and made a beeline for their table.

“Honestly, no clue. They should have nutritional information up somewhere in the lunch line, not just calories and shit that I don’t care about.” Roxy nodded in agreement, sitting down and grabbing a spoon.

“Really! I’m positive they got some of that shit on a website or something, I dunno,” they took a bite of their mac and cheese, cringing. “They should have it in the line though. How am I gonna find that site?” Dirk pulled out his phone, tapping something in.

“Well, I can sure try, I guess,” Dirk shrugged and looked for the plausible website. After a minute of no results, he turned back to his pizza and took a bite. It wasn’t that bad, honestly. It just wasn’t pizza.

Dirk finished his lunch and continued to chat with Roxy about the semantics of school lunches and how they should have nutritional facts somewhere.

“-And, I mean, sure. I guess that it would be a bit of a pain to have to change it every day but they already have to do that with the menu! I’m sure they could handle a second sheet of paper!” Roxy exclaimed. Dirk nodded in agreement.

“We should email the school board office about this, it seems like something they would be interested in. Maybe.” Roxy laughed sarcastically.

“Like hell they would even listen to any of us anyways, especially two gay kids.” Roxy laughed and shook his head. “Those damn old white men controlling our lives! We’ll get them out one day!” Roxy shook a fist at the sky mockingly, making Dirk huff some air out of his nose.

“I’m sure we will. It’s only a matter of time before the reckoning, anyways,” Dirk spoke with sarcasm lacing his voice. Roxy nodded and took a sip of water before perking up.

“Oh! I just remembered! I got your tickets, dude,” Roxy recalled to Dirk. He nodded. “Here they are, just pocket them or something, don’t lose ‘em!” Roxy stood as the lunch bell rang and students stood to rush to their third class. 

“I won’t, Roxy,” Dirk spoke to xem. Roxy nodded.

“You owe me!” Roxy yelled from the hall over the various voices and conversations of students surrounding them. Dirk nodded, and continued to his next class. 

School continued to go by quickly, third class was boring but Dirk had time to doodle random things in his notebook. His head was clouded, and he found himself doodling some little Jake’s here and there. Then, he went to his fourth and final class of the day, physics. He knew what he was doing in physics, so he didn’t need to pay much attention. All he needed to do was to turn in his homework and work on whatever the teacher gave him that day.

He was focused going into that class, until he got a text about halfway through. Dirk carefully took out his phone and opened it under his desk. 

“Hey! Jake here! I asked Jane for your #, sorry about that! I just wanted to talk to you! :)” 

Dirk sighed and rubbed his eyes, blushing a bit. This boy really was persistent, wasn’t he? Dirk raised his hand to go to the bathroom. His professor gracefully allowed, and he headed off down the hall. Once he arrived in the bathroom and was safe from the eye of the teachers, he pulled out his phone and typed out a response, backspacing and retyping a couple times in order to make a good impression.

“Sup, Jake.” He typed. “Aren’t you supposed to be paying attention?” Dirk asked. A couple seconds later, he saw a reply.

“Nope! :P Study Hall.” Dirk saw the little typing bubble go away before popping back up again. “Come join me!” Dirk shook his head.

“I’m in physics, I can’t.” Dirk responded. 

“Darn! Well, you could always come to football practice after school! Jane’s gonna be there!” Jake responded to him. Dirk weighed his options. He didn’t have too much homework, and he could do some while he was at practice if he really wanted to. He supposed it wouldn’t hurt.

“Sure. Big field or practice field?” Dirk replied.

“Big field! It’s the day before a game so we practice there!” Jake explained. Dirk nodded, leaning up against a bathroom stall.

“Cool. See you then.” 

“See you then indeed! :)” Dirk walked back to his physics class, thinking about Jake.

The rest of class went by in a flash, and as soon as the announcements ended and as the school bell signaling the end of the day rang, Dirk grabbed his backpack and headed out in the direction of the football field. Walking up, he saw Jane sitting in the stands. Dirk waved her down, and she waved back. He skipped up the steps, sitting next to Jane on the bleachers.

“Sup, Crocker?” Dirk asked.

“Well, I could ask you the same! What are you doing here?” Dirk pulled out his phone, showing Jane the texts between the two. Dirk saw a glimmer of mischief in her eyes as she scrolled. 

“Oh well that explains it then!” She told him. 

“Yeah, I supposed it wouldn’t hurt to show up. I can do homework here too. And show my support for the, uh, sports team? Football?” Jane giggled, placing a hand on Dirk’s shoulder.

“You have it bad, Strider.” She shook her head. Dirk blushed. He supposed so, maybe. Even then, he couldn’t help it. Jake was just too charming, his eyes were too bright and Dirk felt his heart beating faster just thinking about him.

“I guess you’re right on that one, Crocker.” Dirk sighed, watching as the football players walked onto the field in new gear. Dirk saw Jake wave up at the two of them, and he swore he saw him wink. Maybe it was just hopeful thinking, but part of him wanted to believe it wasn’t. 

The football team started practicing, and with that, Dirk took out his homework and began working out a few problems and writing out a few answers. Jane looked over his shoulder, watching him with interest. Dirk flipped over to his physics notes, eliciting a giggle from Jane.

“What’s so funny?” Dirk asked her.

“Oh, nothing, it’s just that you have these adorable little doodles of Jake all over your notes, lover boy!” Jane began laughing, clutching her stomach. Dirk blushed up a storm, covering his face. Jane just kept laughing.

“Look at this one! Is he shirtless? Oh my goodness, Dirk, you really have it bad for him!” Jane composed herself quickly, pointing out a second doodle. “That one looks really cute though! You should show Jake some of your drawings! Maybe just not all of these ones, though. I’m sure he would be impressed.” 

“I’ll think about it,” Dirk told her. “For now, shut up and let me focus!” Dirk returned.

“Alrighty then, mister romance!” Jane teased. Dirk turned back to his homework, ignoring her comment.

Practice went by quickly. About an hour in, Jane told Dirk that she had to leave because of something having to do with her family, and to tell Jake that’s why she had to leave early. Dirk nodded and continued his work. As the sun got lower in the sky, Dirk found himself shivering, even as the bright lights on the field turned on. Soon, Jake was walking towards him and waving.

“Hello there, pumpkin eyes!” Jake giggled, oblivious to the blush creeping onto Dirk’s already cold flushed face.

“Hey, Jake!” Dirk shoved his homework and binders into his backpack, grabbing it and slinging it over his shoulders. He pulled the sleeves of his hoodie down, shivering.

“Dirk, you look terribly cold! Let’s get inside, I have to change anyway!” Dirk nodded wordlessly, following Jake and jogging into the school building.

When inside, he followed Jake to a little corner of the school, away from the locker rooms.

“Hey, Jake? Aren’t the locker rooms down a different way?” Jake nodded.

“I like to wait until other people are finished,” Jake spoke. “You don’t mind if I change in the bathroom, right? I don’t like locker rooms, if I’m being honest…” Jake trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Go ahead, dude. I won’t stop you,” Dirk responded. Jake grabbed his wrist and pulled him into the bathroom.

“Awesome! You should warm up, hold your hands under the dryer or something. It feels real nice!” Jake spoke, shrugging off his jersey and shoulder pads. Dirk tore his eyes away from Jake, putting his hands under the dryer. He wouldn’t lie, it did feel good. Probably not as good as holding Jake’s hands to warm up, even though he looked sweaty and- oh. Dirk turned back to see Jake’s bare back, covered in freckles, his dark skin shining with sweat. ‘Oh no, he’s hot’, Dirk thought to himself, looking away from him rapidly, turning back to the dryer.

Meanwhile, Jake continued to change, throwing on a graphic t-shirt from his backpack along with some nike sweatpants and tennis shoes. He grabbed his jacket from off of a hook and looked back at Dirk, still shivering in the corner of the bathroom. Jake threw his jacket at Dirk, landing on his shoulders. Dirk looked up confusedly, handing the jacket back to Jake, who shook his head.  
“No, for you! You can give it back to me some other time, I’m sure. You look like you need it though!” Jake continued. “I’m already warmed up from practice, I’ve no need for it! I assure you, it’s alright.” Dirk nodded, putting the jacket on.

“T-thanks, Jake,” Dirk thanked him.

“No problemo, Dirk-a-boy!” Jake smiled that toothy smile that made the corners of his eyes wrinkle. Dirk’s heart thumped loud in his chest as he followed the boy out of the bathroom and towards the locker room.

Jake put the uniform in the locker room, before coming back out to see Dirk standing there waiting for him. 

“What are you waiting for, pal? Little old me?” Jake asked him.

“Oh. Uh. I don’t uh. Have a ride. I thought you knew that…” Dirk rambled. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry, chum! I’ll give you a lift!” Jake exclaimed, walking alongside Dirk towards the parking lot. “I hope you don’t mind, my car’s a bit… unorganized.” 

Unorganized turned out to be a little bit of an understatement. The car, a dark grey toyota something or whatever (Dirk did not know car brands), was completely trashed on the inside. Dirk had to shove receipts and papers onto the floor in order to be able to sit down in the passenger seat. Normally, he would have found this kind of behavior sloppy and gross, but with Jake, it was… honestly kind of endearing? ‘God’, Dirk thought, ‘What have I gotten myself into?’

The car ride to Dirk’s house was mostly silent. He thanked Jake for the ride, and got out, walking into the house and right upstairs to his bedroom. He flopped down onto his bed, sighing. He looked down at his, no, Jake’s jacket, and thought for a moment before shoving his face into the fabric of it, taking a deep breath.

Mr. Strider had it bad.


	3. In Which Dirk Attends The Big Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for the game. Dirk has never been more nervous in his life.

Strider woke up anxious, eyes shooting open at the first beep of his alarm clock. Today was the day. Today was the day that he would be asking out his crush and Dirk felt dread on the horizon. He shot out of bed, combing his hair and spraying himself in a healthy amount of his brother’s cologne which he stole. He threw on a good shirt and his finest pair of jeans and ran downstairs with his school supplies, as well as homecoming tickets in his pocket.

Same old, every day. Run downstairs, board the bus and head to school. It was always like this, at least since Dirk could remember. He hated it. He always knew he hated it, because why wouldn’t he? His brother always told him that a schedule was a healthy thing to have, but why? Why would he have one when he could be free ranging? Maybe even free ranging like livestock, where the animals are given more acres of land to roam, even though there is a limit. There will always be a limit to where the animals can go. Maybe all Dirk needed was a few more acres to explore, but for now, all he wanted was Jake to accept his invitation, because his heart was beating fast and he couldn’t sit still. 

Dirk couldn’t remember any of his classes that day. His head was in a different place, he didn’t even want to think about anything else. Just Jake, always Jake. He felt weaker in a way, he felt like his edge wasn’t there and that he couldn’t do anything right. Clumsy, but the feeling he got when he thought about him was worth it. Happiness, joy, and a sense of existential dread to taste. Time flies by when you’re having fun, Dirk supposed.

Dirk walked to the lunch room, waving at Roxy. He walked over, a little faster than normal, with some pep in his pace. He joined them in the back of the lunch line. 

“Yo! Dirky! What’s good, man?” Roxy asked him.

“I’ve got dread in my brain and lead in my veins, and with every step that I take I feel like going insane. The angel on my shoulder’s in pain, the devil remains, and even though it feels like a gain, I know it’s in vain,” Dirk explained. 

“Word! You just dropped a fucking track, dude. What’s happening so that I’m so blessed by your sick rhymes today, my good sir? My fellow comrade?” Dirk laughed and shrugged.

“Anxiety,” Dirk stated plainly. Roxy nodded.

“Makes sense, I don’t really understand, though. If you felt that way, why didn’t you say so? I know you have my number and my name in your phone, and that you coulda sent a text before you left from your home!” Roxy retorted. Dirk faked a mic drop, walking up with Roxy. 

“Besides that, do you know what you’ll be getting for lunch? By the looks of the menu, I think I’ve got a hunch.”  
“Oh Dirk, my bro, oh you know me so well. Popcorn chicken with a side of breadsticks from hell.”

“So basically, I think I’ll get the same, unless they’re serving horse dick with a side of monkey brain.” 

“Dirk, not to interrupt the word flow but people are looking at us and I’m hungry,” Roxy interjected. Dirk shrugged.

“Same. Hi, could we both get popcorn chicken with breadsticks please? Thank you,” Dirk slid Roxy their tray of food, both paying and exiting the lunch line. 

“So, Dirk, on a more serious note, how are you doing? What’s got you worked up?” Roxy asked, putting a hand on his shoulder as the two sat down at the lunch table.

“Jake,” Dirk sighed. “I physically cannot stop thinking about how tonight will go, and not just that. What if he says yes and I manage to fuck it up even after that?” Roxy frowned, patting him on the back.

“Dude. I know you won’t. Plus, Jake’s like… stupid in love with you. I doubt that anything you did would change that fact. Seriously. He’s head over heels for you, and I don’t think you realize that,” Roxy told him. 

“The issue is I am too. I don’t even want to admit it but,” Dirk paused to take a bite out of a breadstick. “I, Dirk Strider, master of emotionless shenanigans and logic, have fallen for a labrador retriever of a boy. God help me.” Dirk placed his head in his hands, making Roxy laugh.

“You’re the catboy to his dogboy, you realize that, right? It’s kind of funny how stupid in love the both of you are,” Roxy mentioned, eating some of their popcorn chicken. 

“I’m not a fucking catboy, Roxy. I’m probably like, a shiba-inu or something,” Dirk argued. 

“Shibas are basically cats but they’re dogs, bro. That barely counts.”

“No fucking way, dude. Shibes are dogs, not cats,” Dirk retorted.

“They have so many cat-like traits. They’re one of my favorite dog breeds, and I’m a cat person, Dirk.” Roxy pointed to his minimalistic cat ear headband. “They’re stubborn and strong-willed, one of the hardest dogs to train like… at all. Jade was telling me all about them. They’re independent and only like cuddles and pets when they feel like it. Doesn’t this sound kind of catty?” Roxy explained. Dirk groaned, rolling his eyes and popping a piece of chicken in his mouth.

“Fine. Still doesn’t make me a catboy,” Dirk groaned.

“Oh whatever! You’re still my little catboy, aren’t you, Dirk?” Roxy teased.

“Fuck off and let me eat my chicken in peace.”

“And you tell me you’re not like a cat,” Roxy rolled their eyes.

“You didn’t ask me if I was like a cat, you asked me if I was a catboy! There’s a big difference there, my dude. I do have cat-like traits or whatever, but do you see any ears? Or a tail? Nope. I’m not a catboy.”

“Then you’re not a dog-boy either, Dirk.”

“Please, I just want to eat my chicken nuggets, Roxy. I am begging you to drop this topic,” Dirk pleaded. 

“Ok, ok, fine,” Roxy laughed. “Back to your anxiety, then.”

“Nope, not going there, back to dogboys,” Dirk joked. 

“Dirk. For serious, just take a deep breath. You both like each other like… so much. It’s actually kind of painful to watch both of you dance around it when you talk. Like, when y’all were at the Starbucks, I was actually in pain watching the two of you. It was funny, but painful,” Roxy explained to Dirk, who was nodding along. Dirk took a deep breath, in through his nose and out through his mouth.

“Thanks, Rox. You’re going to be at the game too, right?” Dirk asked. Roxy nodded.

“Absolutely, my man. I wouldn’t ditch you like that! Plus, Janey’s gonna be there and last I heard she was bringing cupcakes!” 

“Oh man, can she hook me up too?” Dirk asked.

“I’ll text her, but it’s probably a yes.” Dirk fist pumped. 

“Awesome. She’s great at baking,” Dirk shoved a breadstick in his face. 

“I know right? That’s my girlfriend, for you!” Roxy joked. 

“You’re the only hetero couple in this damn school that I respect,” Dirk spoke.

“Are you calling me a het?” Roxy faked hurt, clutching at their heart. “How dare you!”

“No, you’re gay as fuck,” Dirk snorted. 

“Good,” Roxy spoke again. The lunch bell rang, and Dirk shoved the rest of his food in his mouth before waving goodbye to Roxy and heading on to his final classes of the day.

Dirk’s heart was beating fast. He couldn’t help it. With a mix of adrenaline in his system and pure, unfiltered anxiety about the game, he honestly couldn’t think of anything else besides Jake. About halfway through his last class, he texted Roxy under the desk to meet him in the bathroom in the hall by the library on the second floor. 

Dirk got up and excused himself to the restroom. His teacher, uncaring, nodded and allowed him out. He felt his feet pick up pace as he saw Roxy hanging out by the bathroom door. 

“Hey Roxy…” Dirk spoke. Roxy frowned, opening their arms for him.

“Come here, poor little thing,” Roxy sighed. Dirk hugged him, feeling himself shaking a tad from anxiety.

“Don’t pity me…” Dirk’s voice wavered. “I’m just a little anxious.”

“I’m sorry, realized as I said it…” Roxy trailed off. “Is this about Jake?” Dirk nodded into their shoulder. 

“I can’t stop worrying. I know, it’s bad, but I can’t.” Roxy squeezed him tighter.

“He likes you a lot, Dirk. He’s told Jane about you, and Jane’s told me. If this wasn’t going to work out, we wouldn’t try it. But we know it will. You two are super gay for each other.” Dirk giggled a bit into Roxy before breaking away.

“I just feel like I want to rip off the bandaid, get over it already. But that would ruin some things, right? I have to do it tonight. Fuck, Roxy, I’m not ready for this at all…”

“You are, silly! Jake literally adores you, even if you trip and fall flat on your face, he’d still accept. Plus, you’re charming as ever. I know you won’t mess this up, there’s literally no way you physically can,” Roxy smiled cheerily. Dirk found xer smile contagious.

“Alright, alright. Just…” Dirk placed a hand on Roxy’s shoulder. “Just be there for me, okay? And… wait… what class are you in right now? Shit, are you missing something important?” Dirk asked suddenly.

“No, stupid. I’m in study hall. I’m bored as fuck anyways. You’re honestly helping me a ton here,” Roxy rolled his eyes. “Like, actually. If you wanna come back to my classroom, that would help immensely.”

“I’m in one of my important classes, Roxy, no.” Dirk shook his head.

“Please? I know you can feign your brother’s signature! He’s asked you to help him sign things a million times by now!” Dirk sighed. “Plus, there’s no way they could tell you no, even if they wanted to. You have that celeb’s bro privilege thing working for you!” Roxy winked, turning and walking back to their class. 

“Roxy I’m not-”

“See you in five!” Roxy giggled and walked off. Dirk sighed and walked back to his class.

In class, Dirk pulled out a slip of paper, writing something on it in red ink, signing Dave’s name. He slung his bag over his shoulder and slipped it to the teacher. The teacher took one look at it and nodded, shooing him out of class. Dirk fist pumped internally, and walked out in the direction of Roxy’s study block. 

Dirk peeked into the classroom to see no teacher there, and just a bunch of kids talking and laughing between one another. Dirk entered, and Roxy waved him down. He strode over to their little corner of the room, taking a seat next to them.

“How hard was that?” Roxy asked. 

“Not at all. I probably didn’t even need to sign a slip, I could have managed with just a wink or some shit. Could have slipped that bitch a twenty and he wouldn’t tell a soul,” he joked. 

“Oh, I forgot to tell you,” Roxy nodded their head in towards someone. “Jake and Jane are in here too.” Dirk’s face heated up as he saw Jane and Jake walking over to them.

“Dirk!” Jake nearly shouted. “I thought you were supposed to be in… class? Class right now!”

“I am, but Roxy dragged me out.” 

“No fair! When I asked you to come over you said no…” Jake frowned. 

“That’s because I thought I couldn’t do it, but apparently, if I sign my brother’s name on something, I can get out of any class. It’s like a get out of jail free card but with the perks of a celebrity of a brother, I guess.” Jake laughed.

“Well, if I were a teacher, I know I’d take the bait!” Jake laughed. Jane sat next to Roxy, and the two of them started talking about something that Dirk didn’t care about. 

“I could hook you up with a signature. One from my actual brother, not from me. I help him sign things.” 

“I’d take either! I’m sure your signature is just as cool as his! His is kind of weird, anyways. Just DSTRI in all caps? Not even in cursive either…” Jake shrugged. “You should show me your signature! I could show you mine, though my handwriting is a little out of wack!” Jake pushed up his glasses and shoved his arm out.

“Uh… why are you giving me your arm?” Dirk asked.

“To sign it! Duh! Like how people sign other people’s casts and stuff, but this time it’s on an actual arm rather than some plaster!” Jake explained. Dirk shook his head, and pulled out a sharpie from his backpack. 

“Okay, then. Here goes.” Dirk uncapped the marker and let it flow across Jake’s arm. Pretty cursive, all in one line, only stopping to dot i’s and cross t’s. Once he was done, Dirk rolled up his sleeve and gave it to Jake. 

“Here you go, man.” Dirk laughed a bit as Jake scribbled his signature onto his arm. Once he was done, Dirk looked at it. It was messy, sure, but it was really charming. Jake scratched his head.

“I did my best…” Dirk shook his head.

“I love it. Gonna get this shit tattooed asap, man.” Jake smiled his puppy dog smile and nodded as Dirk rolled his sleeve up again.

“Your signature is so pretty, are you an artist?” Jake asked.

“I am, yeah,” Dirk confirmed. 

“Oh! Do you have any sketchbooks or doodles I can see? Oh! Can you draw me?” Dirk internally facepalmed.

“Are you always this hyper?” Dirk laughed.

“No, not always. It’s just the night of a game, an important one, and I always get a little antsy before one,” Jake explained. Dirk nodded, pulling a slip of paper out of his binder. A blank one, not one with doodles of Jake all over it. Normally, Dirk would turn down such a request, but he was really gay for Jake so it was fine. Probably.

“I get anxiety like that too, don’t worry. It makes me feel terrible though, so I hope you feel better soon,” Dirk told Jake. 

“Well I sure hope so too, Dirk! I could never live with this level of nonsense. I don’t know how people with anxiety deal. I only ever get it when something important’s going to happen. It’s terrible, Dirk!” Jake frowned. “If you ever get any anxiety, you can come to me! Our coach taught us some cool breathing techniques for before games, and they really help!” Jake smiled back at Dirk, who was focused on his paper.

“Sounds neat, I’ll have to check it out,” Dirk spoke. 

Dirk sketched out the outline of Jake’s face cartoonishly. He made sure to capture his bright smile and fluffy hair, as well as his silly and over the top expressions he made as if he was straight from a movie. He looked so happy and in the moment. Dirk wished his anxiety let him be that way. 

When he finished, Dirk turned the paper to show Jake, who looked astonished.

“Wow! That was pretty darn quick, Dirk! I love it! Look at my eyes! I look like a wooby anime boy!” Jake laughed, and Dirk nodded. “Is this how you see me? I look dashing!” Dirk blushed.

“Well, yeah. I think you look nice, so… yeah,” Dirk stuttered. 

“Oh, why thank you! I think you look pretty handsome yourself, my friend!” Dirk’s face heated up more and he prayed that Jake wouldn’t notice. A friend… just a friend. 

“You two need to kiss already, jeez. I’m tired of waiting, you two,” Roxy jumped in. 

“Roxy!” Jake and Dirk both yelled at the same time, causing Jane and Roxy to start cackling. 

“Seriously! I’m tired of waiting!!” Jane added. Jake stammered, face beet red. Dirk had his head in his hands.

“Do you know what they’re on about, Dirk?” Jake asked.

“No clue.”

Dirk and Jake sat together talking until the bell rang, and Jake headed off to get ready for the game. Dirk walked along with Roxy to their car to sit in it and do work until it was time for the school to start letting people into the stadium.

Upon entering the stadium, Dirk could see the concessions stand and a few people already sitting on the bleachers. Dirk followed Roxy to the stands, and sat down on one of the front rows. 

A few minutes passed, and the stadium began flooding with more and more students. Dirk looked at his phone for the time impatiently, before looking back at the field. As the clock struck 7 PM, the announcer’s box started to introduce each team: The Alternia High Trolls, and the Skaia High Sprites. At the introduction of the Sprites, the football team burst through the large inflatable spirogram that they set up at every game. It was a weird tradition, but it seemed to work, because their football team was great.

At the first blow of the whistle and cheer of the crowd, Dirk found himself mesmerized by the team’s movements. He had no idea how football works or how it should be played, but he found his eye drawn to each player anyways. How they moved, how far the ball could be thrown, how the other team failed to intercept, how he could hear some distant ‘fuck’s from the distance at which he sat. 

But most importantly, he could see Jake. He could see him run and tackle and throw and do whatever the hell a football player does. And even then, as he kicked a field goal to win the game while he took a sip of the hot chocolate Jane and Roxy had offered him, he could see his signature written on his inner arm. 

Once the game ended, Jane had gone off to find Jake, while Roxy went off to drive home. Dirk followed Jane, and he stood outside of the bathroom door, waiting for Jake to come out. Jane left, waving Dirk goodbye, turning the corner as Jake came out of the bathroom. His hair was messy, and his glasses were a little foggy. He was kind of smelly, and really sweaty. Despite that, and despite Dirk’s heart hammering in his chest, he held out a ticket.

“I, Dirk Strider, cordially invite you to accompany me to the homecoming dance this weekend,” Dirk spoke. Jake blushed, and then sighed.

“And for a moment I thought you didn’t like me back! Seriously, Strider! You gave me quite a scare earlier!” Jake laughed, taking Dirk’s hand. “I would love to.” Dirk’s heart soared, and he leaned in and hugged Jake.

“You’re sweaty,” Dirk mumbled into his chest.

“No duh, Sherlock!” Jake laughed, hugging him tighter. After a few moments, Jake let go, pocketing the ticket that Dirk had given him. He shook his head, offering his hand back to Dirk. Dirk smiled and accepted, walking out to the car with him, hand in hand. 

“Jake,” Dirk began as the two stepped into the car. Jake looked at him tilting his head to the side like a puppy. “I hope you know that I like you. A lot. Even before we formally met, I mean,” Dirk stammered. He rubbed the back of his head, looking away before Jake put a hand on his shoulder, bringing him back to attention.

“I did too, don’t you worry your little noggin about that! I always found the stories that Jane and Roxy told me of you quite compelling. You do robotics? I could honestly never! How do you even get those little buggers to work! Not to mention musical stuff, I’m no good at it…” Jake laughed awkwardly, Dirk doing the same. 

“It takes a sharp mind to get it all to work out. When it doesn’t, I tend to just give up.”

“Oh, but you should never give up!” Jake exclaimed.

“I know, I just get discouraged. Either way, you’re not alone in that feeling. I could never play sports, my body would just give out on me and I’d collapse center field.” Jake giggled, nodding.

“Sometimes even I feel like I’m about to! But I have to just focus on the moment, and when that doesn’t work, I always think about someone who would be proud of me. Like back then when I kicked that field goal…” Jake trailed off. “I was thinking about you, Dirk. Even though I know you don’t care about sports, I’ve seen the way you look at me when I talk about the things I’m interested in. I’ve seen that little smirk at the corners of your mouth that let me know you’re enjoying yourself. I think about that, Dirk,” Jake scratched his head, looking embarrassed. Dirk blushed. He thought about him too? Dirk couldn’t even get him off of his mind for the past few days. It seemed nearly outlandish to him that someone like Jake would even pay any mind to him.

Dirk smiled, looking up at Jake. There was a moment where you could hear two hearts beating quick, before the two leaned in and kissed. It felt like fireworks, even for a few moments, Dirk could feel Jake smiling against his lips and it felt like he had solved a millennium problem all on his own, the answer being Jake. He always was the answer, wasn’t he? All those nights Dirk spent wondering if he was forever going to be lonely, without knowing that Jake had always wondered the same. 

Jake drove Dirk home that night, leaving Dirk with a kiss on the cheek and a heart full of hope. Dirk ran upstairs, collapsing in bed, and he realized that he was still wearing Jake’s jacket.


End file.
